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THE PESA POST
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Parents, Educators/Teachers & Students in Action

February 16, 2023
PESA UNVEILS CAAP

PESA COMMENCES ITS NEW COMMUNITY ATTENDANCE ASSISTANCE PROGRAM (CAAP) TO COMBAT CHRONIC ABSENTEEISM
Chronic absenteeism can be the root cause that adversely impacts a student's academic performance and other life outcomes. According to the Baltimore Education Research Consortium, “By 6th grade, chronic absence becomes a leading indicator that a student will drop out of high school.” On top of that, students living in communities with high levels of poverty are four times more likely to be chronically absent than their peers. This is “often for reasons beyond their control, such as unstable housing, unreliable transportation and a lack of access to health care,” per the National Center for Children in Poverty.

These statistics are not news to the student support team at PESA. According to PESA’s new Director of CAAP, Cindy Henriquez, “we saw a pattern not only from our diversion program but also the referrals we were receiving from educational institutions and decided to take action.” CAAP stands for Community Attendance Assistance Program and its primary goal is to offer students comprehensive support to increase their school attendance, and positively impact their future as a result.

“Before the pandemic,” says Executive Director Seymour Amster, “the California Legislature passed laws that prior to a youth being sent to a School Attendance Review Board, they had to be referred to a community based organization.” That, coupled with the patterns we were seeing, was the final piece in PESA’s decision to play its role in reversing chronic absenteeism in our school communities. “The main purpose of the program,” Amster went on, “is to get students to understand that they can obtain their personal goals through education.”

As this program is spearheaded by Henriquez, a certified School Social Worker, it is being implemented after a great deal of research and study of other evidence-based practices. As such, it will be under constant development and improvement as the CAAP team learns more about the needs of students and how to best support them. Henriquez explained that, once a referral comes in, “the next step is to assign a [case manager] to work with the student and figure out the pattern: What days are they missing? Is there an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) in place? What are the potential barriers?” “Then,” Henriquez continued, “we conduct a biopsychosocial assessment, conduct a meeting with the parent(s) or guardian, create an educational plan, and target each particular student’s needs.” 

The overarching goal of the program will be to reduce chronic absenteeism, but the more individualistic goals are to provide students the tools they need to succeed and see the importance of completing their primary and secondary education.

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